Free template
Rent Ledger Template
A free rent ledger for landlords. Add your properties and leases, and rent charges itself every month. Record what tenants pay and it keeps a printable tenant ledger with a running balance for each tenant, a rent roll for any date, and a Schedule E summary by property for tax time. Use it right here with nothing to install, or download it for Excel and Google Sheets.
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Rent ledger workbook
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What is a rent ledger
What goes on a tenant ledger
A rent ledger, or tenant ledger, is the running record of what one tenant owes and pays. Keep one per lease, keep it current, and a dispute about a missed payment takes a minute to settle. These are the lines a complete ledger carries.
Tenant and unit
Who the ledger is for, the property address and the unit.
Lease terms
Start and end dates, monthly rent, the due day, the grace period and the late fee.
Every charge
Rent for each month, prorated rent, late fees, damage and other charges, each with a date.
Every payment
Date, amount and how it was paid: check number, ACH, Zelle, money order.
Credits
Concessions, proration on move-out and anything else that lowers what the tenant owes.
Security deposit
What you hold, and when any of it was applied to the balance or refunded.
Running balance
What the tenant owes, or the credit in their favor, after every line.
What's inside
A rent ledger, rent roll and Schedule E in one file
Tenant ledger
One printable statement per tenant: every charge and payment in date order with a running balance and the deposit held.
Rent roll
Every unit on any date you pick: tenant, lease dates, rent, market rent, deposit, balance and status, with occupancy and vacancy loss.
Automatic rent
Rent posts itself on the due day from each lease, prorated by day for a mid-month move-in. Late fees are flagged for you to charge in one click.
Expenses
Every cost against a property, or split evenly across all of them, on the Schedule E line it belongs to.
Schedule E summary
Rents received and each expense line by property, with total expenses and net income or loss.
Month by month
Rent charged, collected, expenses, net income and cash flow after improvements and mortgage principal.
Dashboard
Collected versus charged, who owes you, occupancy, leases ending in the next 60 days and late fees to charge.
Excel download
The same tabs with live formulas, for Excel or Google Sheets. Your own numbers, or a blank copy.
How to use it
From lease to Schedule E in six steps
Most landlord books go wrong in the same two places: a payment that never gets logged, and a repair that was really an improvement. The template is built around both.
- 01
Add your properties and units
A house is one unit. A duplex is two. Market rent is optional; it shows vacancy loss on the rent roll.
- 02
Add each lease
Tenant, unit, dates, rent, due day, grace period and late fee. Carry in last year's deposit and any balance owed on January 1.
- 03
Record what tenants pay
Rent charges itself. You only log payments, late fees, other charges, credits and deposits.
- 04
Log expenses by Schedule E line
Repairs, insurance, mortgage interest, taxes, utilities. A new roof is a capital improvement, not a repair.
- 05
Check the dashboard weekly
It lists who is behind, which late fees are due and which leases end soon.
- 06
Hand over Schedule E at tax time
Download the Excel file or print the Schedule E tab for whoever prepares your return.
Rent roll
What a rent roll shows a lender
A refinance, a sale or a new loan will ask for a rent roll. It lists every unit on one date, so the reader can see the income the property actually produces and where it is at risk.
Occupancy. Units let against units owned. Vacant units show their market rent as vacancy loss.
Lease dates. Leases ending soon or running month to month are income that could stop. The rent roll shows which.
Rent against market. Rent well below market is upside to a buyer and a question to a lender.
Arrears and deposits. What each tenant owes on the date, and the deposits you hold, which are a liability and not income.
Categories
Rental expense categories, by Schedule E line
Every expense goes on one of these lines, so the year-end totals drop straight onto Schedule E. Two more categories hold money that isn't deducted this year: capital improvements, which you depreciate with theMACRS calculator, and mortgage principal.
| Line | Expense |
|---|---|
| 5 | Advertising |
| 6 | Auto and travel |
| 7 | Cleaning and maintenance |
| 8 | Commissions |
| 9 | Insurance |
| 10 | Legal and other professional fees |
| 11 | Management fees |
| 12 | Mortgage interest paid to banks, etc. |
| 13 | Other interest |
| 14 | Repairs |
| 15 | Supplies |
| 16 | Taxes |
| 17 | Utilities |
| 18 | Depreciation expense or depletion |
| 19 | Other |
When the spreadsheet gets heavy
Rather hand the rental books to someone?
Ledgerbrook keeps landlord books in QuickBooks Online: rent and deposits matched to each tenant, expenses on the right Schedule E line, every account reconciled each month, and a year-end package ready for your tax preparer. Fixed monthly price, no contract.
More for landlords: property management bookkeeping,security deposit accounting,a real estate chart of accounts andshort-term rental bookkeeping.
Frequently asked
Rent ledger FAQ
What is a rent ledger?
A rent ledger, also called a tenant ledger, is the running record of everything a tenant owes and pays: each month's rent, late fees and other charges, every payment with its date, any credits, and the balance after each line. Landlords keep one per tenant. It settles disputes about what was paid, and it is the first thing a court, a lender or a new property manager asks for.
What should be on a rental ledger?
The tenant's name, the property and unit, the lease dates, the monthly rent and due date, every charge with its date and amount, every payment with its date, amount and method, any credits, the security deposit held, and a running balance. This template builds all of that from the lease and the payments you record.
Can I make my own tenant ledger?
Yes. A tenant ledger is just an accurate, dated list of charges and payments with a running balance, and a spreadsheet works fine for a few units. The risk with a homemade one is a missed month or a balance that doesn't carry forward. This template charges rent from the lease automatically so no month is skipped, and it prints a clean statement for each tenant.
Does a landlord have to give a tenant their rent ledger?
It depends on the state and the program. Some states require a receipt for rent paid in cash, some require a payment history if the tenant asks, and subsidized housing programs often require one. In an eviction for unpaid rent, expect the court to want the ledger. Check your state's landlord-tenant law, and keep the ledger current either way.
What is the difference between a rent ledger and a rent roll?
A rent ledger follows one tenant over time: every charge and payment. A rent roll is a snapshot of every unit on one date: who lives there, the lease dates, the rent, the deposit and any balance owed. Lenders and buyers ask for the rent roll; tenants and courts ask for the ledger. This template gives you both from the same data.
Is a security deposit rental income?
Not when you receive it, if you plan to return it. IRS Publication 527 says to include it in income when you keep part or all of it because the tenant didn't live up to the lease. If the lease says the deposit is the last month's rent, it is advance rent and is income in the year you receive it, so record it as a payment instead.
Is rent paid in advance taxed when I receive it?
Yes. IRS Publication 527 says to include advance rent in income in the year you receive it, whatever period it covers. That is why the Schedule E tab counts rent when it is paid, not when it is due.
How do I calculate prorated rent?
Divide the monthly rent by the number of days in that month, then multiply by the days the tenant has the unit. For rent of 1,180 a month on a lease starting March 15, that is 1,180 x 17 / 31 = 647.10. The template does this automatically when a lease starts after its due day. Some leases use a 30-day or 365-day convention instead; if yours does, enter a credit for the difference.
Is this rent ledger template really free?
Yes. No sign-up and no email gate. Use it on this page or download the Excel file and keep it.
Where is my data stored when I use the online version?
Only in your own browser, using local storage on your device. Nothing is sent to Ledgerbrook. It won't follow you to another device, so use Download backup on the Properties tab, or Download my Excel, to move it.
Does it work in Google Sheets?
Yes. Download the .xlsx file, then in Google Sheets choose File, Import, Upload. The formulas use functions that work the same in Excel and Google Sheets.